John Guerrasio and Laura Gardner in The Last Romance. Photo by Sorcha Augustine.

Is it ever too late to find love? In the case of playwright Joe DiPietro, the answer is most likely never. That question is at the heart of DiPietro’s play, The Last Romance, currently in production at Florida Studio Theatre (FST). The Last Romance follows Ralph, an 80-year-old Italian-American widower living in Hoboken. Ralph lives with his sister Rose, whose husband left her some years ago. Although brimming with life, Ralph feels enclosed by his small-town community—that is until he meets the elegant Carol when taking a detour from his daily walk.

“We did The Last Romance 15 years ago and had a wonderful hit with it because it’s such a beautiful play,” says Richard Hopkins, executive producer of FST. “Joe DiPietro is one of our superb living playwrights. “The play is a touching comedy that follows Ralph and Carol as their relationship blooms—it’s complicated and augmented by flashbacks to Ralph’s earlier life and his relationship with his sister—it’s a wonderful story of contrast. Ralph was a railroad man all his life and Carol is from a more upper class background.”

The Last Romance, while contemporary, is not set in the present day. Instead, the play, which was published in 2008, takes place 20-30 years ago, in an age before cell phones. In a simpler time, the characters are reliant on chance meetings and “old-school” forms of communication to relay their feelings. “Like any play, you can look back at it and say, ‘the style has changed, the morality has changed,’ but human nature is basically the same as it always has been. People are seeking connection, love and appreciation,” says Hopkins.

Within the play, it’s critical for not just the lead actors—John Guerrasio as Ralph and Laura Gardner as Carol—but for the rest of the cast to exude a certain level of chemistry. According to Hopkins, DiPietro’s writing requires an ensemble nature from all of the actors within his various works. “The ensemble is core, and it requires excellent acting to portray the subtext of what’s going on, so that we can see how people behave socially, while understanding what they’re feeling underneath the conversation,” attests Hopkins.

The Last Romance, July 22-August 16, Florida Studio Theatre, 1241 N Palm Ave, Sarasota.

John Guerrasio and Laura Gardner in The Last Romance. Photo by Sorcha Augustine.

To learn more click here